The present invention relates to an acupressure-type moxa treatment device that also exhibits therapeutic effects of acupressure.
The conventional acupressure-type moxa treatment device of this kind has a structure as shown in FIG. 9, wherein an inner cylinder having a cavity for loading moxa is provided. A bar-shaped moxa 51, which is moulded into a round bar of which the major component is leaves of mugwort, is ignited at the top end thereof and inserted into a front cylinder 52 from the back end thereof, and an appropriate amount of air for combustion is fed to the ignited portion of the moxa through air inlets 52a, 53a to maintain stable combustion of the bar-shaped moxa 51. The exteriors of the front inner cylinder 52 and the rear inner cylinder 53 are surrounded by a front outer cylinder 54 and a rear outer cylinder 55 respectively. Moreover, the outer circumferential surfaces of the respective outer cylinders are covered with heat-insulating material layers 56, 57 so that the therapist can hold the outer cylinder by hand and handle the device easily and freely. Thermic rays of moxabustion generated by the combustion of the bar-shaped moxa 51 are radiated through an opening 58a in the front end of a cap 58 towards the affected part. 59 is a heat insulator, 60 is a partition wall and 61 is a pipe. 62 is a moxa support portion that stabilizes the bar-shaped moxa 51 relative to the moxa treatment device. The front outer cylinder 54 and the rear outer cylinder 55 are provided with air control ports 54a. These outer cylinders can be rotated over corresponding inner cylinders to make these air control ports and the air inlets 52a, 53a provided in the sides of the inner cylinders 52, 53 work together to regulate the passage of air for combustion.
When the above-mentioned acupressure-type moxa treatment device is used to repeatedly give thermotherapy to the affected part, the bar-shaped moxa 51 will be consumed and its overall length will gradually get shorter. The bar-shaped moxa 51 will be pressed further forward into the inner cylinder and subsequently unloaded so powdery ashes of moxa accumulated inside can be removed and a fresh bar-shaped moxa 51 can be loaded.
The major component of the bar-shaped moxa 51 used in the conventional acupressure type moxa treatment device is moxa, which is normally produced by drying leaves of mugwort and rumpling the dried leaves with the fingers to refine them into cotton-like substance. This substance is then processed and turned into flakes or grains. Other materials that have proved to have beneficial effects may be used as supplementary components. Appropriate portions of these materials are mixed together, and wrapped in a sheet of paper (such as a kind of Japanese paper that does not produce an unpleasant odor when burned) to form the bar-shaped moxa. This bar-shaped moxa is loaded in a moxa treatment device such as one shown in the diagram and in the manner as illustrated in the diagram and used as the fuel of the acupressure-type moxa treatment device.
The use of the conventional form of moxa of a moxa treatment device in the abovementioned conventional configuration generates a large volume of smoke and unpleasant odor. These were proved to be causes of asthma attack in asthmatic patients who received moxabustion treatments. It was a problem because the smoke and odor might cause pain to asthmatic patients, the number of which has been increasing with recent environmental pollution. Japanese Utility Model No. HEI 7-31050 proposed improvements in the moxa itself, decreasing significantly the generation of smoke or bad smell, while maintaining the effects of the conventional moxabustion treatment.
This improvement will be explained briefly. The improved moxa does not differ from the conventional one in the sense that it uses, as the main component, the conventional moxa, which is prepared by drying leaves of mugwort and rumpling the dried leaves with the fingers to refine them into a cotton-like substance. This moxa is then subjected to dry distilling in an atmosphere of an inert gas, and carbonized. A binder is added to a mixture of this carbonized moxa and activated powder. The mixture is kneaded and moulded into a bar. A bar-shaped moxa is produced, which does not differ at all in appearance from the conventional bar-shaped moxa.
As mentioned before, this bar-shaped moxa does not differ externally from the conventional products, and can be directly used in the conventional acupressure-type moxa treatment device (for example, the device of FIG. 8). Moreover, the improved moxa has the following outstanding merits in its effects relative to the conventional moxa:
a) As carbonized moxa (that is, moxa dry-distilled in an inert gas) and activated charcoal powder are used as the materials, the improved moxa generates less smoke and bad smell when it is burnt. Moreover, because of the properties of the above-mentioned materials, the combustion process of the improved moxa is similar to that of charcoal and can maintain a combustion that has highly stable caloric force and temperature. As a result, the improved moxa can realize a state that promotes the generation of far-infrared rays. PA0 b) As the materials are kneaded, bound, and moulded into a certain shape, it is easy to handle as a product. PA0 c) As the ashes of the improved moxa retain the shape of the moulding without crumbling, the ashes do not scatter. Hence, there is reduced danger of burns, fire, etc.; cleaning is simpler; and the device itself is safer. PA0 1) When the combustion depletes the moxa after the top end of the bar-shaped moxa has been ignited, the bar-shaped moxa has been inserted deep into the inner cylinder of the moxa treatment device, and the burning moxa has radicled thermic rays of moxabustion are radiated towards the affected part, it will become necessary to push the bar-shaped moxa forward to keep the moxa burning in an optimal position and ensure stable combustion of the moxa. Estimating the distance the moxa should be pushed forward is extremely difficult because it is hard to judge the present position. Accordingly, it is done almost by a trial-and-error method. PA0 2) To know exactly the state of depletion of the bar-shaped moxa, the bar-shaped moxa must be withdrawn from the inner cylinder. This is extremely inconvenient. If the moxa is not withdrawn, it will be difficult to know the exact remaining quantity of the moxa, and this in turn may hinder systematic execution of the therapy. PA0 3) In giving thermotherapy, the difficulty in predicting the rate of depletion of the moxa makes it difficult to predict the time required for the treatments and to create a systematic therapy plan. As a result, scientific processing of the therapy cannot be made smoothly.
When the above-mentioned moxa (carbonized moxa) described in Provisional Utility Model HEI 7-31050 is used in an acupressure-type moxa treatment device of the conventional form to give thermotherapy, the following problems will be encountered: